Showing posts with label Vision. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Vision. Show all posts

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Mike T Nelson on Super Human Radio: Visual Aspect of Performance


Just a heads up that I was recently on Super Human Radio again discussing how your vision affects your performance

Learn some simple exercises to improve your athletic performance on the field and in the gym
  • Should you look in the mirror in the gym?
  • Neurologic reflexes to maximize strength
  • Should you lift without your glasses?
  • Can you really "see" results from all this stuff?

Vision is MUCH more than just the ability to see clearly! Learn more below

Super Human Radio Show - # 295 - The Visual Aspect Of Performance


Special thanks to Carl as he does a great show and makes doing an interview a fun experience.

Be sure to check the Super Human Radio home page

If you missed the first episode I did on proprioception "2 way muscle talk" check it out below.

Z Health, Proprioception, Neuroplasticity all on Super Human Radio


Any comments, let me know!
Rock on
Mike T Nelson

Monday, December 8, 2008

Reflexive Lifting and Updates

Happy Monday!

I am up bright and early to go see Brad "No Relation" Nelson at Kinetic Edge to work on some of my sports specific motions as I am prepping for the live portion of the Z Health Master Trainer program that will be held in CA in early January. I started the program this past March and each month with have a set of assignments and conference calls. It will be good to have some review my sprint techniques and other S Phase movements.

Acupuncture and Pain Thoughts

I asked a student who is almost done studying TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) about his thoughts on my acupuncture post (click HERE for it) and here is what he had to say

Thanks for the thought...I don't even want to touch it in a way....it is such a huge discussion where do you begin. Acupuncture moves qi and blood. To say anything else--it is like where do you start? It is like yes it works for many things but in TCM you can't disregard the herbal aspect since the combination therapy is usually always better....so difficult to discuss...it is like doing a study on whether iron dumbbells are better than plastic bells. Placebo yes to extent...bedside manner....time with the patient/perceived care...how much stimulation with each point...what pattern or condition is the patient in...you are getting stuck with a needle so regardless there is going to be a response from the body neuro/chem/physiologic... I just like to tell people that I think I can help them...and let the individual be the judge if acupuncture "works"

It is like the more you know and see the less you feel you know...(that is where I am at with the medicine---but that is what make it cool.)


Take care,
mase

Reflexive Lifting

One thing I have been playing around with more in training lately are eye movements.

The eyes have an effect on reflexes and can be used to improve your lifts. Sounds insane I know.

Here is a great article by Dr. Cobb that outlines it below:

Reflexive Lifting: How To Make Your Neural Reflexes Work With You And Not Against You!

Play around with it and let me know what you find.

I am sure most of us remember the Olympics and watching Lo lo hit the last hurdle as she looked UP at the monitor and took her eyes off the hurdle in front of her (see the video below at 1:46 and notice her head position vs the other athletes).

A simple one to try is on a bench press to watch the bar as you lower it to your chest and then move your eyes back up to the position that you want the bar to be at once you are done (e.g lockout). Moving the eyes up tends to facilitate extension (as in tricep extension).

If you are interested in these concepts, they are covered in the Z Health I Phase Cert.

My training log is pretty updated for those that are interested. Check out the link below
Mike T Nelson Training Blogspot.

Nothing huge for weights yet, but just working back into it after a nice trip to S Padre; so I will be all good to go this week. For those new to it, my main overarching priority is movement quality so if a lift degrades my movement, I don't do it.

Enjoy!

Sunday, August 24, 2008

Amazing Olympic Pictures Part 1 and Z Health I Phase Review

Notice how they always turn their head or eyes to either spot where they will land or towards the ball. Notice the balance of tension and relaxation (open palm/hand). Amazing!

I am just finishing up Z Health I Phase (yes once again) and it has been great! Excellent reminders and more practice for me on the I Phase drills with some feedback which is always helpful.

I Phase works to integrate eye muscle movements and also vestibular (inner ear balance) into your practice. Remember that the body primarily gets information your joints (proprioception), eyes (visual and proprioception from eye muscle movements) and vestibular (inner ear-balance); so it makes sense for optimal athletic performance that you will need some work on each one of these systems AND a way to know that they are working correctly.

All of them feed into the brain via the nervous system and some times they can become "rewired." For an example, see the link HERE so I Phase provides some cool tools to retrain the nervous system and gets you on the fast track to amazing movement!

Mike N

Sunday, July 20, 2008

Testimonial for Z Health and New Dragon Door Workshop: Z-Health

Today we have a testimonial from Dr. Jim Ryan and an announcement of a new Z Health workshop done with Dragon Door.

Z Health Testimonial
Mike Nelson really knows his stuff and he checked me for a visual override to my R-phase movements. He found a slight issue that showed a major improvement in my strength, stability and stamina! In my case, keeping my eyes (not my head) looking right improved my strength and stability dramatically.

After discovering the eyes right issue Mike evaluated the strength of a muscle (my Gluteus Medius - a critical pelvic stabilizer) via manual testing. He chose this muscle because they are a major player in normal walking, standing and because I mentioned that they tire out too easily while do my R-phase drills.

Checking their strength, the difference with eyes straight ahead vs. eyes right was night and day; straight ahead I could basically offer no resistance to Mike's pressure but with my eyes shifted to look Right I had to ask him, "Are you pressing as hard as before?" Of course he was, but it felt effortless to hold against his pressure.
--note from Mike, many times eye movements get "wired" to muscle function. In Jim's case, his glute was much stronger by ONLY moving his eyes to the right! Hard to believe I know.

Such a small, simple but obviously important change is part of what the Z-Health system teaches it's practitioners to look for when evaluating your movement, performance and pain related issues...Now my balance is even better, my lower back feels stronger and I don't get as easily fatigued in those muscles while doing the hip and ankle drills.

Thanks, Mike!
Dr. Jim Ryan, RKC


Be sure to check out his blog HERE and on the right side links under blogs. To get further info about Z Health for yourself, click HERE for all the details. If you are not in MN, click on the Z Health pic on the upper right to order the R Phase DVD and manual for yourself directly.

A new seminar!
How to take full control of your body, live a pain-free life and physically excel in all you do…

Z-Health
The Essential Secrets of
Elite Performance
With
Dr. Eric Cobb

Sponsored by Dragon Door Publications

Friday, October 31—Sunday, November 2, 2008
Minneapolis, Minnesota


Dr. Eric Cobb's Z-Health system gains its surprising power and
effectiveness from one fundamental insight:

When it comes to our well-being and our physical performance,
the nervous system RULES!

However, this can be VERY BAD NEWS:

If the nervous system is left entirely to its own devices, it
can literally cripple you, even entirely destroy your ability to
function without great pain and debilitating disease.

Attempting to be your best friend and save you from perceived
threat, your nervous system can and OFTEN DOES turn into your
worst enemy, playing absolute havoc with your health and
happiness.

Most of us, unfortunately, have little clue and less training in
how to heed and effectively respond to the danger signals from
our own body, indicating that our own nervous system has got us
by the throat and is slowly throttling the life out of us.

Great athletes have their careers cut short. The average athlete
declines into sub-par mediocrity. The rest of us struggle
increasingly with performance-crimping pains and aches and
eventually become empty husks compared to our vibrant former
selves.

Many of us get trapped on an endless treadmill of expensive
massage, chiropractic, nouveau diets, gizmos and one "magical
promise" treatment after another, looking in vain for a fix to
our woes. Many of us even resort to pain-killing drugs and other
destructive medications. (Which at best just numb us toward an
even speedier decline…)

Sadly, most of us simply continue to deteriorate, in strength,
in flexibility, in performance, in our general health.

Through ignorance, we give away our power to the nervous system
and let it contribute to our quicker destruction…

But it absolutely DOESN'T have to be that way!

If we can understand—truly understand—how the nervous system
really operates we can form a WIN-WIN partnership with our
"ruler"—and radically shift the balance of power.

Instead of being the unwitting victims of a despot run rampant,
we become the guiding pilots of a magnificently tuned and
calibrated system for supreme physical performance!


Enter Dr. Eric Cobb's Z-Health program—giving you everything you
need—not only to regain full control of your body—but also to
ramp up your physical performance to almost "superstar" levels.

Brilliant, immensely erudite, Dr. Cobb has explored every
imaginable avenue in his constant quest to push the human
performance envelope. From esoteric Russian health systems, to
Feldenkreis and somatics, to sports, to martial arts, to the
frontiers of Western neuroscience, Dr. Cobb has made it his
life-purpose to understand how we can live truly pain-free,
high-performance lives.

And be it the professional athlete or the formerly bed-ridden
housewife—the results have spoken for themselves. Time and time
again: careers resurrected or jump-started. Shattered lives
rebuilt. Hope rekindled. Vibrant life reclaimed.

Having watched an increasing number of our best RKCs go through
the Z-Health program and report amazing results… and having
myself attended the six-day Z-Health R-Phase certification, I
was confident enough in Z-Health to organize a 3-day
introduction to Dr. Cobb's system, for a larger audience.

Right now, Z-Health is the inner success secret for an elite
group of high performers and trainers—and a handful of lucky lay
folk.

But I think it's a crying shame that such a dramatically
powerful health and performance system continues to remain
almost "under wraps". The private reserve of a lucky few who are
in the know.

So, at my personal invitation, Dr. Cobb has agreed to share key
insights and drills from THREE levels of his Z-Health
certification program.

Until now, you would have had to invest many, many thousands of
dollars to access this information—over a very extended period
of time.

Now, finally you can access much of this amazing knowledge for a
fraction of that expense in both time and money!

So, as a fortunate participant, here's what you will walk way
with after attending Dr. Cobb's Z-Health: The Essential Secrets
of Elite Performance…


Become an equal partner with your nervous system when you
discover how to dramatically enhance your pain-free health and
performance ACROSS THE BOARD.

Discover how to take advantage of your natural inborn
reflexes—to make them HELP you, not hinder you. Hardly a soul on
the planet really understands how to do this. Now, YOU'LL know!

Get a "best of" approach to learning the practical application
of Z-Health principles, drills, and techniques utilized by elite
athletes around the world.

Be spoon-fed the essential theory behind the scientific
breakthroughs—Dr. Cobb is brilliant at turning the most
sophisticated "neurophysiology of performance" into a simple set
of easy-to-grasp and easy-to-apply formulas. He's done the heavy
lifting for you—now just gulp down and get going!

And speaking of spoon-fed, don't worry, there will be nothing on
the menu that resembles a "riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an
enigma":

Your Z-Health course is going to be strictly a "meat and
potatoes" affair—filled with high-payoff drills, exercises and
concepts you can immediately apply to enhance your life, health
and performance.


This course is going to be ALL ABOUT PAYOFF in the field of
performance. We're talking a severe bang for your buck in the
world of real physical movement—whether it be gardening in your
back yard pain-free, or competing on the highest level as a
professional athlete.

To view complete information on our website click here now


Register on-line or call 1-800-899-5111


Friday, March 7, 2008

Z Health S Phase Update I


Greetings from sunny AZ! Just wanted to do a super fast Z Health Update on S Phase!

S stands for Sports Phase, so it is time for athletic movement! Whoo ha.
The basis of Z Health is the 9S model

Strength
Stamina
Skill
Sustenance (nutrition)
Suppleness (flexibility/mobility)
Structure
Spirit
Style
Speed

Think of all of those coming off of the athlete in the middle. The job of the coach/trainer to infuse each of those qualities into the athlete to make them better. This may change during each training session! How many qualities do most strength coaches/personal trainers work on during a session/season even?

VISION
A key component to elite performance is vision. Not just your visual acuity (how well can you see the eye chart in the docs office), but beyond that.

We go over many different types of vision such as
Dynamic Visual Acuity
Eye Tracking
Eye Focus/Accommodation
Peripheral Vision
Vergence Flexibility and Stamina
Imagery
Sequencing
Eye-hand and Eye-foot Coordination

So vision is beyond just an eye chart! Think of all the great players like Michael Jordan, Wayne Gretzky, Walter Payton, etc and all of them are described as having great vision. Many times the greats were NOT the best in the weight room. Performance on the field is what matters.

Remember that your eyes are controlled by MUSCLES, therefore, vision can be TRAINED. I have never been able to figure out why most people, even at a very high level, NEVER talk about this fact??

Most Olympic athletes have not even done visual training. We are primarily visual creatures and the nervous system's highest priority (most of the time) is visual. So this has HUGE applications to sport and pain relief!

This also means that if you sucked at any ball sports now or when you were growing up (my hand is up), you probably have a vision issue and many many times IT CAN BE CORRECTED! Trust me, I know first hand the difference is jaw dropping. You will actually ENJOY sports!

Athletics should be a LIFE LONG activity, and the true promise of Z Health is that it can elevate almost anyone to an extremely high level at virtually ANY age! Life does not end a 30, 40, 50 or even beyond 60 years of age!
But, like all things, you need to put your time and reps in and no one will ever do that for you. Then again, was anything that gave a huge sense of accomplishment ever easy?


Movement Training (aka Speed training)
There a trend now for speed camps and speed work galore. Yep, athletes need to be fast, but most of it is not speed in a linear sense (e.g straight line). They need to be taught how to move and do transitions from one position to the next.

The reason R Phase and I Phase are before S Phase is that they teach all the basic movements that are integrated even further in S Phase. To use a language analogy, if you want to learn Spanish, you need to learn the alphabet (letters--R Phase) first. Next put them into words (I Phase--integrated movements) and then sentences (S Phase--larger/gross movements). Without a good foundation, you will have bad movement but it just be a little faster.

Think of putting a larger engine (more muscle) into a car with a bad alignment--no good! You could even argue that with a bigger engine, you are on a path to tear yourself apart even FASTER!

Again, QUALITY over QUANTITY.

So far it has been great and there are still 2 more days to go! Can't wait!

Any questions, let me know.
Rock on
Mike N